The Lendan Stones

Magic is rarely understood, though it seems abundant in the world. Some of the most curious magical phenomena shall be discussed herein.

The Lendan Stones are both a place and the name for one of the most astonishing and unique natural magic. Originating on a far away rocky island named the same as individual stones are called today, the first odd thing about them is that they always appear in identical pairs, which seem to be held together by some force. Not very strongly, as they are easily pulled apart, just strong enough that they will not separate by the force of wind or water.

Discovered by explorers of the First Ones aeons ago, it was soon noticed that they were magical, and yet no obvious effect could be discerned. Thus, they remained a curiosity for a long time, until the artist Nyeos collected several pairs, and proceeded to paint them in different colours. One day, he dropped one of the stones and it seemed to change its colour. Intrigued, he picked it up and dropped it again, only to have it revert back to its original colour. When experimenting with several stones at once, it took not long for Nyeos to realise that they did not actually switch colours at all, they switched places with their counterpart. No one had noticed before because the pairs are always identical. But when you drop a Lendan Stone, it will switch places with its brother, no matter how far apart they are. They will do so even if you attach something to them, as long as it is small and light. A bit of paint or a piece of parchment tied to or around the stone with a bit of string will make the journey, while more heavier objects will prevent the effect.

Nyeos’ discovery was soon turned into a practical application and today, most First Ones will carry with them a small sack of Lendan Stones. Upon meeting another First One they wish to stay in contact with, either of them will break up a pair and hand one of the stones to the other. This way they can write letters even after parting ways, by attaching them to their part of the pair and dropping it. And that is why it is sometimes called "dropping someone a message".

The stones seem to lose their power over time once separated, but it can be regained by joining them together again and keeping them as a pair for a while. It truly is an astonishing phenomenon, still not entirely understood even though they have been in practical use for as long as even most First Ones remember.

Over the centuries, more elaborate systems of communication have emerged, with entities such as realms building central communication centres where stones from all First Ones in the realm are gathered and if one of them sends a message, scribes quickly copy it to everyone else and drop the copy to all other First Ones of the realm.